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Tag Archives: middle east

In the Present

Polygamy is legal in 50 countries around the world. Most of these countries exist in Africa, southeast Asia, and the Middle East. They are represented by dark blue on the map to the right. Another 15 African countries accept polygamy as part of their culture and it continues to exist even if it has been outlawed. This phenomena is due to differences in customary law (history and culture) and civil law. South Africa is an example of this. In some cases, civil law is reflective of colonization and not the temperature of the people.

An interesting note – some countries make the legality of polygyny contingent upon the first wife’s approval.

In the Past

Regional differences accounted for the disparate popularity of polygyny and polyandry.

Historically, in regions where resources were scarce sharing one wife was very common. This was seen as a practical solution. The costs of maintaining a family were distributed amongst several men and the number of offspring was limited. On the other hand, some matriarchal societies chose polyandry not out of economic necessity but because it reflected their cultural beliefs. And still other regions chose polyandry because men largely outnumbered women in their societies.

Polygany was seen as an extravagant display of wealth or blessings. If a man was important or wealthy, then he was more likely to have many wives.

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"My wish is to ride the tempest, tame the waves, kill the sharks. I want to drive the enemy away to save our people. I will not resign myself to the usual lot of women who bow their heads and become concubines." - Triệu Thị Trinh